The first two weeks and its Harrows.

Of all the things that are strange (or politely, 'different') about this country, the one thing that I am still very much not used to is the eggs. Driving on the wrong side of the road? Normal. Having a pint far before 5pm? Completely socially acceptable, and I'm very OK with that. Lighting up a fag outside? Not really healthy, but normal, and seen with frequency outside the doors of the noonday drinking pubs. The one thing, though, that still catches my eye every time is the storage of eggs in a grocery store.

They're not refrigerated. They just sit on a shelf next to the marmalade or breads. Sometimes they're shelved right next to a refrigerated compartment, and I always wonder why they don't just put those eggs someplace where they won't start going bad when there's a damn fridge right next to them. Jeez.


So, the last twoish weeks here in London have been quite the little adventure, including, but not limited to, visiting Buckingham, St. Paul's Cathedral, and being entranced by the efforts of Wicked and Billy Elliot, and can I say? This city is beautiful. Granted, any greenery is restricted to the various (gorgeous) parks that litter the place like lakes in Minnesota, but I still find this city to be splendid in all it's works (or those that I've seen so far). Enough has been said about the public transportation system here that I'll not waste any more time talking about it. Yeah, it's an engineering work of art, I'd say. Then you've got the public house system (colloquially referred to simply as 'pubs'), which is a wonder in of itself; cheapish food, a plethora of ales, ciders, and whatnot to choose from (and I do NOT mean what America is used to), and a general relaxed, cozy atmosphere. Mmmmmmmmm, pubs...

As far as the actual adventuring goes, I will say this: I still have a lot still to see, and plenty of time to see these things in, but I have decided that St. Paul's warrants another visit, and soon. And the dome is why: among those 500+ steps that lead one up to the lofty heights of the doming tiptop of the cathedral, there is a priceless collection of layman art posted, but unframed, along the walls, banisters, and ceiling beams. I mean to say, the graffiti. There is so much in the way of vandalisation and carving-your-name-into-several-hundred-year-old-plaster that I want to return to take pictures of just the graffiti. The one picture I took on my first trip can be seen in the separate picture post.

And as far as the shows I've seen go, I'll say this: Holy sh*t. So far, I've seen Billy Elliot and Wicked, and lemme tell you, those shows were by far the best shows I've ever seen. Wicked especially. (No offense meant to Elliot, but those accents were extremely heavy on my American ears, and I just don't like children. Sorry.) And now planning to see Les Misérables and Chicago, as well as a trip to the Tower of London and one or two of the city's galleries/museums (the British Museum and the National Gallery), I am very much looking forward to the next couple of weeks. And the entire semester, to be sure. But definitely the next couple of weeks. 

Oh yeah, and classes seem pretty cool too.